12: Chapter 12 Exploration

As the first glimmer of dawn pierced through the jungle mist, Lin Yin arrived promptly in front of the Lord's cabin and softly woke Lin Tian.

"Lord, it is dawn."

Lin Tian sat up from the hard wooden plank bed that made his back ache, rubbed his sore neck and shoulders, and smiled bitterly: "This bed board is as hard as Lin Yan's armor... I must find a way to upgrade it today!"

Pushing open the creaking wooden door, in the morning light, the team was already fully assembled and lined up. The ten Archers led by Lin Yin stood lightly on the left flank;

The ten Heavy Armored Spearmen under Lin Feng's command stood solemnly in the center, their silver-white armor reflecting a cold, hard light;

The ten Rock Armor Soldiers led by Lin Yan guarded the right flank like solid rocks, their stone skin appearing heavy and sturdy in the light.

"Good!" Seeing this spirited team with the beginnings of a military presence, most of Lin Tian's fatigue and worries from the night vanished. "Now this looks like something!"

He took out the stored 20 units of wild boar meat, 10 units of leopard meat, and the 10 liters of spring water remaining from yesterday, sharing this simple breakfast with all the soldiers.

The meat sizzled on the campfire, and the aroma of fat filled the air. Although the soldiers still maintained discipline, their eyes held a satisfied glow. Being able to eat their fill in this crisis-ridden world was already a great blessing.

During the meal, Lin Tian contacted Lord Su Wan through the system panel.

[Lin Tian]: "Miss Su, good morning! Are you awake?"

After waiting for a moment, the other party replied, seemingly having just woken up.

[Lord Su Wan]: "So early, Lord Lin. I'm awake, I'm awake~ Are you looking to trade for moon birch spirit wood?"

[Lin Tian]: "Yes, that's right! But... a small situation came up." He paused, his tone honest. "The Barracks were expanded last night, and a new batch of soldiers underwent Fusion, so food consumption was higher than expected. I'm a bit short on supplies now, so I can only offer 20 units of wild boar meat to trade with you."

[Lord Su Wan]: (Sent an understanding emoji) "I thought it was something major. Let's stick to the price we discussed yesterday, 2 units of meat for 1 unit of moon birch wood! But... I don't want wolf meat! It's too gross~ (Attached a cute frowning emoji)"

[Lin Tian]: "Okay, okay, okay! Miss Su, you are a person of taste! Shall we trade now?"

[Lord Su Wan]: "Deal!"

A flash of light passed, the 20 units of wild boar meat disappeared, and in their place were 10 pieces of moon birch spirit wood, each about a meter long, with fine texture and patterns flowing like moonlight, resting quietly in front of Lin Tian.

In a forest clearing surrounded by exotic flowers and plants, particularly favored by the trees, eight nature elves with slender figures, slightly pointed ears, and emerald-like eyes were gathered around Lord Su Wan.

They were Lord Su Wan's initial troop type, Rare High-Grade Forest Whisper Elves, skilled in communicating with plants and promoting growth, and possessed strong healing and control abilities.

Looking at the 20 units of wild boar meat that had arrived, Lord Su Wan let out a soft sigh of relief. She turned to all the elves and said softly: "Sisters, we can improve our meals again today."

The leading elf named Aelia responded softly: "Lord, you need not blame yourself. Your talent [Nature's Inspiration] can cause ordinary plants to mutate into spirit wood; this is already a very remarkable ability. Even without powerful combat talents, we have other ways to survive."

Lord Su Wan's territory was laid out like a fairy-tale elven village: several treehouses naturally grown from living trees were scattered in an orderly fashion, vines woven into fences bloomed with glowing flowers, and a carefully tended nursery was planted with various exotic plants.

However, behind this beautiful scene lay a grim reality; although her troop type was of high quality, they were all support-oriented, and their frontal combat capability was weak.

The only ones possessing a certain degree of attack capability were those who could entangle with vines and condense light arrows using natural energy, but the power was limited.

"I know," Lord Su Wan said, stroking a slightly glowing moon birch sapling beside her, determination flashing in her eyes. "We cannot expand our territory like those combat-oriented Lords. But we can become the best logistics and support personnel."

"Collecting resources, cultivating spirit plants, trading supplies... once we have saved enough spirit crystals, we will buy defense tower blueprints and build the territory into a fortress that no one can breach!"

Aelia exchanged a glance with the other elves and said in unison: "We swear to follow you to the death, Lord!"

Lord Su Wan smiled with relief. Her path might be difficult, but it was by no means a dead end. These 20 units of wild meat would allow them to survive steadily for another day and trade for more resources needed for development.

After receiving the moon birch spirit wood, Lin Tian immediately began the Fusion. Ten soft yet vibrant beams of emerald green and silver-white light enveloped the ten ordinary Archers. Within the light, their vine armor underwent a visible transformation:

When the light dissipated, ten brand-new Moon Shadow Archers stood in formation. Their eyes were sharp as hawks, their postures upright as pines, and the longbows in their hands flowed with a moonlight-like luster. Standing together with Lin Yin, they formed a formidable elite long-range squad.

"Good! Excellent!" Lin Tian looked over this brand-new long-range force with satisfaction. "Now, it's time for us to go out and stretch our muscles!"

He formulated today's exploration plan: because his troop types lacked the Inspect skill and could not know the level of wild monsters in advance, to ensure safety, Lin Tian decided to accompany the team personally today.

Of course, he would stay in the most core and safest position of the team, and coupled with the strength that had doubled compared to yesterday, it gave him some confidence. The thirty-three soldiers would advance in a three-layered defensive circle formation:

Outermost layer: 10 Rock Armor Soldiers, led by Lin Yan, acting as mobile fortresses to withstand the first wave of impact.

Middle layer: 10 Heavy Armored Spearmen, commanded by Lin Feng, responsible for support, finishing off enemies, and counter-charging.

Core layer: Lin Tian himself located at the center, with 11 Moon Shadow Archers (including Lin Yin) surrounding and guarding him, capable of both long-range firepower coverage and close-quarters protection when necessary.

"Today's goal: clear all threats within 500 meters directly in front of the territory, then circle the territory clockwise to complete the peripheral sweep. At the same time, try to find a stable water source!" Lin Tian issued the order, "Move out!"

The moment the team stepped out of the protection shield, a stench so thick it was nauseating, a mixture of blood and rot, rushed toward them.

Before their eyes was a shocking, devastated battlefield:

Trees within a hundred-meter radius had been violently destroyed; over a dozen large trees that would require two people to hug were uprooted or snapped in half, the broken wood jagged and hideous;

The ground was covered in massive claw marks and drag marks half a meter deep, the soil overturned and mixed with dark red, blackening blood and minced flesh; severed limbs and remains scattered everywhere attracted large swarms of buzzing flies—these were the leftovers from the "meal" of the three Rotting Skeleton Giant Bears from last night.

Even more heart-wrenching was that some rocks and tree trunks bore terrifying claw marks several inches deep, as if they had been struck head-on by a battering ram; pools of semi-coagulated blood appeared an eerie purplish-black in the morning light, emitting a pungent, fishy odor.

The entire area was terrifyingly silent; even the chirping of birds and insects had vanished, leaving only the whimpering sound of the wind blowing through broken branches.

"These three big guys... have quite an appetite." Lin Tian suppressed his stomach discomfort and joked with feigned ease, but his eyes were incredibly grave. He squatted down to carefully observe a bear paw print that was larger than his entire body; the soil at the edges was still slightly moist. "It seems they lingered here for quite a long time last night."

Lin Yan spoke in a muffled voice: "Lord, the smell of blood here must have attracted other predators. We need to clear this area as soon as possible."

"You are right." Lin Tian stood up, brushed the dirt off his hands, and swept his gaze across the land that had been violently ravaged, finally looking toward the depths of the jungle. "Let's start here. Tell everyone to stay alert; the guys who can treat this area as an all-you-can-eat buffet are no pushovers. Their 'leftovers' are probably not simple either."